You’ll Stay With Me, Won’t You?Chapter 2

Henry used to be just like that when he was little.

Back then, I lived in his house. At first, everyone looked down on me, the quiet, mute kid.

He had been kidnapped as a child, and both his parents died in that incident.

Old Man Darcy, worried about his trauma, let him choose playmates from all over the city.

And Henry, among a group of chattering peers, chose me – clumsy and slow.

With that, my family, the Chen family, rose in status.

Later, I found out Henry chose me that day because I was the quietest, not noisy.

Years passed, and I lived inconspicuously in the Darcy household. Then, one stormy night, thunder woke me.

Then I heard a knock on the door.

Opening it, Henry stood there, clutching a blanket, his face serious, saying each word carefully:

"You're afraid of thunder?"

I looked bewildered, about to shake my head.

But he pressed down on my head, saying awkwardly:

"Got it. Then I guess I'll reluctantly keep you company tonight."

…So silly.

Did he really think I couldn't tell he was scared himself?

Those who crave love often struggle to receive it.

Just as I, as a child yearning for a mother's love, never received a single moment of her favoritism.

The only time she ever praised me was on the night Henry chose me.

So, Henry, who wasn't truly mine, was destined to be separated from me.

Six years ago, before that fire, the heroine, Scarlett Kingston, showed me her future with Henry.

It turned out I was just a villainess, an accident—a one-night stand with the hero, secretly giving birth to his child, and then using that to extort a huge fortune.

In that future, I died in a fire.

After my death, Scarlett redeemed the hero, and they lived happily ever after years later.

Even my child recognized someone else as his new mom.

After seeing it, I felt a little lost.

Was I really that bad in someone else's story?

Later, I actually found myself trapped in a fire.

I only managed to pass my child through a narrow gap before the engulfing flames completely blocked me inside.

I choked on the smoke, and when I opened my eyes again, I was in the present, six years later.

I am mute.

I can't say pleasant words, nor harsh ones.

I can't even win an argument.

If I hadn't been truly desperate, my mind only recalling Henry's phone number,

I think we would never have met again.

But now I regret it a little.

I hadn't intended to return to the Darcy house. In my mind, Henry would unhesitatingly give me money and send me away.

After all, in his eyes, that chaotic night was a scheme orchestrated by me and the Chen family.

But things seemed to have gone awry.

I suddenly felt like I was sitting on pins and needles, wanting to say I didn't want the money, I wanted to get out of the car.

But Alan pushed the phone away, saying he couldn't read, and the driver remained focused on the road ahead.

So I could only watch helplessly as the car drove into the Darcy family's underground garage.